Archive: February, 2010
Sheil Kapadia, Philly.com
Byron Westbrook was arrested on charges of drunken driving early Friday morning, according to multiple reports.
Byron, 25, is the younger brother of Eagles running back Brian Westbrook.
Byron was charged with DWI, DUI, negligent driving and failure to drive right of center, according to the Web site of Washington D.C.'s NBC affiliate, WRC-TV. He was pulled over around 2 a.m. after changing lanes several times.
Sheil Kapadia, Philly.com
On the day when veterans were supposed to arrive at Lehigh last summer, Shawn Andrews arrived in a white Range Rover.
He was sporting a cleaned-up mohawk and had a Macbook Pro in hand. He had traveled to other countries during the offseason and was learning new languages. He said he felt physically right and mentally right. Andrews had never been more excited about training camp, and getting a chance to play alongside his brother.
But the next day, Andrews was not on the field for the team's first full-squad workout. Andy Reid explained afterwards that Andrews' back tightened up during a run that morning.
Sheil Kapadia, Philly.com
Think way back to early September and Week 1 of the NFL season.
Do you remember who was in the starting lineup at left defensive end opposite Trent Cole?
It was Victor Abiamiri. The third-year defensive lineman actually recovered a fumble and took it to the end zone for a touchdown.
Sheil Kapadia, Philly.com
Before we get to the Michael Vick report, a couple housekeeping items.
We started our Year in Review series with David Akers, and as some commenters and the folks at Iggles Blog pointed out, I somehow forgot to include his performance on kickoffs. Bad job by me. Maybe this is what happens to my brain once football season ends?
Anyway, Derek over at IB fills in the gaps and starts an interesting discussion about whether the Eagles could benefit from a kickoff specialist. Worth checking out.
Sheil Kapadia, Philly.com
Today was supposed to be Victor Abiamiri's season in review, but I was a little more swamped than I expected and never got around to reviewing my notes on him.
That will come Wednesday. I promise. No sleep until we post on Abiamiri.
In the mean time, some quick nuggets below to hold you over.
Sheil Kapadia, Philly.com
We'll take a look at every player on the Eagles' roster and evaluate how each performed in 2009.
We'll go (mostly) in alphabetical order, but I need more time checking my in-season notes on Victor Abiamiri, so we start with David Akers.
The veteran kicker hit 86.5 percent of his field-goal attempts last season, the third-best mark of his career and the best since 2002. It was the ninth-best overall percentage among kickers with at least 15 attempts.
Akers led all kickers with 32 makes, but also had the most tries (37).
He was money from 39 yards and under, hitting 20 of 21 attempts.
From 40-49, Akers made 11 of 13 kicks (84.6 percent). The two misses? Both against the Raiders, in a game where he attempted five field goals. In his previous 10 seasons, Akers hit 69.2 percent from that range.
From 40 or longer, he was 12-for-16 (75 percent). Only four kickers (who attempted at least 10 from that distance) had a better percentage. In his previous 10 seasons, Akers hit 64.9 percent from 40 or longer.
In terms of "game on the line" kicks, Akers hit winners against the Redskins and Broncos in the second half of the season.
The numbers don't lie. Even by his own standards, Akers was well above average in 2009. And keep in mind, this is a guy who was named to the league's All-Decade team.
At 35, he showed no signs of slowing down and will return to a field-goal unit that was ranked best in the league by Rick Gosselin of The Dallas Morning News.
Akers is under contract for 2010, but then would be eligible for free agency.
David Akers: Stats
Follow Moving the Chains on Twitter. And become a fan on Facebook.
Sheil Kapadia, Philly.com
Back in October of 2003, Rush Limbaugh resigned from ESPN after an uproar over comments he made about Donovan McNabb.
As you probably remember, Limbaugh said the media overrated McNabb because they wanted to see a black quarterback succeed.
More than six years later, he's bringing up the incident once again.
Sheil Kapadia, Philly.com
Last week, Brian Westbrook spoke at length about his concussions during a radio interview with former teammate Blaine Bishop.
He also said there was "no question" in his mind that Donovan McNabb would be back with the Eagles.
But what about Westbrook's own future with the team that drafted him in the third round back in 2002?
Sheil Kapadia, Philly.com
Too early for mock drafts, you say?
Never.
The Scouting Combine in Indy is less than two weeks away, and there are hundreds of mock drafts already out there.
Sheil Kapadia, Philly.com
A flurry of links to get to today.
We start with a column from Michael Lombardi of the National Football Post, which suggests an Eagles-Browns deal involving Kevin Kolb would make sense for both teams. What should the Birds ask for in return? Defensive tackle Shaun Rogers.
Writes Lombardi:
Follow
Sheil on Twitter. And become
a fan of Moving the Chains on Facebook.
Download our NEW iPhone/Android app for even more Birds
coverage, including app-exclusive videos and analysis. Download it here.
